My 70 year old mother in law just got a new iPhone. She really got it out of necessity because her old phone, which she had like forever, finally gave up.
It is kind of humorous to watch her trying to figure it out, if for no other reason than it is second nature for many of us. We slide our little fingers left and right. And if something does not come up right away, how about a little tap, tap, tap?
I know she gets frustrated, but I also know she'll eventually figure it out.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Talk to me
Bella has been talking a lot more lately. Not only is she saying more words, but she is also saying them more clearly. She can also say two or three word phrases, such as "Mami, sit down", "Mami, push", or, a very handy one "Fifi, no!" But from all her new words, it appears that "Stop" is by far her favorite one. She definitely knows the meaning. If she only responded when we try to use it on her...
Friday, September 10, 2010
Playset
The girl’s new play set was installed today. Lionel resisted, but I prevailed. So here it is ...
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
There's a reason they call it work
How quickly have I gone back to my old ways. I am once again working crazy hours. It is just so hard to stop when you see that no matter how hard you work, your to-do list just keeps growing. And that is not a good feeling to have. I could probably work around the clock all week and still have something I did not get to. And that one thing I did not do is probably the one that will get me in trouble around here. Or maybe I will get lucky, and the requestor will simply forget they even asked.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Battles
This weekend, for the very first time in a very long time, my kids were driving me absolutely insane. Everything was a battle, from beginning to end: Eat your food! Don't throw your food! I am talking to you! Do not push your sister! We need to change your diaper now! You have to share! Stop whining!
SATURDAY
On Saturday, while Isabella took a nap, I took Sofia shopping with me. She needed tennis shoes, and I needed to return couple things. Once at the store, she decided she wanted me to buy her baby, to which I said no. "But I want it!", she said. I reminded her she had tons of babies at home, and that we were not there to buy any toys. She then proceeded to completely lose it, and continued screaming "I want that baby! I want that baby! I want that babyyyyyyy!" All this while I stood there and wondered what in the world was wrong with her. Amazingly enough I managed to keep my cool. I guess one of us had to. So I repeated that I was NOT going to buy her the baby, and that we were heading home. As I made my way through the store she walked right behind me, screaming at the top of her lungs. And I tried not to pay attention to the ugly looks we were probably getting from everybody around us. Eventually she did calm down. As we were walking to the car she asked if I would buy her a pretzel, to which I clearly said NO. And that was too bad, because I really wanted one.
That night, for whatever reason, Bella could not sleep. Around midnight I ended up taking her to our bed, and although she finally fell asleep, that translated into a terrible night for me. She moved around all night, and had me on the edge of the bed.
SUNDAY
Since she did not sleep so well, Bella was in a bad mood most of the day. And Sofia did not listen to pretty much anything we had to say. She complained about everything, whined endlessly, and once again threw a tantrum because there was something she did not want to share. We told her that if she was going to be selfish, then we were all going to act that way. And the TV for instance was Lionel's and mine, and as such, she could not watch it anymore. Instead of calming her down, that only got her going some more. "I want to watch TV", she said multiple times, each time louder than the previous one. I was so fed up with her that she ended up going to bed without me even saying good night, much less staying with her for a few minutes, our usual routine.
MONDAY
And this was our bonus day. Today the neighbors invited us over for lunch, which was clearly a nice detail since it was them, their family, and us. Sofia was Ok at the beginning, but once again lost it once it was time to actually sit down at eat. She said she did not want to sit at the kids table, even though she knew the other kids sitting there. We told her she either sat down or we were going home, but she wouldn't calm down. So Lionel ended up walking back home with her, while Isabella and I stayed. Eventually they came back, once she finally calmed down. She did not deserve to be there, but she couldn't stay home by herself, and Lionel did not want to be rude to the neighbors by not showing up again. And have I mentioned that Isabella didn't take a nap? After lunch the kids played for a little while, but by then Isabella was tired and cranky so around four we headed home. I then drove around with her so she took a nap in the car. After another battle we gave them a shower, had dinner, had another fight with Sofia about not sharing with her sister, and finally put them down. And once again, thanks to her bad behavior, Sofia went to bed without a good night from me.
So that's it! That is how we spent our weekend: Fighting with the ones we love the most. Isabella is always a handful, but I am not sure what is going on with Sofia. She has always been a whiner, but flat out throwing tantrums is out of character for her. Maybe she is already picking up bad habits from school. Maybe the transition to kindergarten is being so tough on her that she insists on fighting for things she thinks she can control. I am not sure, but I certainly wish I knew.
SATURDAY
On Saturday, while Isabella took a nap, I took Sofia shopping with me. She needed tennis shoes, and I needed to return couple things. Once at the store, she decided she wanted me to buy her baby, to which I said no. "But I want it!", she said. I reminded her she had tons of babies at home, and that we were not there to buy any toys. She then proceeded to completely lose it, and continued screaming "I want that baby! I want that baby! I want that babyyyyyyy!" All this while I stood there and wondered what in the world was wrong with her. Amazingly enough I managed to keep my cool. I guess one of us had to. So I repeated that I was NOT going to buy her the baby, and that we were heading home. As I made my way through the store she walked right behind me, screaming at the top of her lungs. And I tried not to pay attention to the ugly looks we were probably getting from everybody around us. Eventually she did calm down. As we were walking to the car she asked if I would buy her a pretzel, to which I clearly said NO. And that was too bad, because I really wanted one.
That night, for whatever reason, Bella could not sleep. Around midnight I ended up taking her to our bed, and although she finally fell asleep, that translated into a terrible night for me. She moved around all night, and had me on the edge of the bed.
SUNDAY
Since she did not sleep so well, Bella was in a bad mood most of the day. And Sofia did not listen to pretty much anything we had to say. She complained about everything, whined endlessly, and once again threw a tantrum because there was something she did not want to share. We told her that if she was going to be selfish, then we were all going to act that way. And the TV for instance was Lionel's and mine, and as such, she could not watch it anymore. Instead of calming her down, that only got her going some more. "I want to watch TV", she said multiple times, each time louder than the previous one. I was so fed up with her that she ended up going to bed without me even saying good night, much less staying with her for a few minutes, our usual routine.
MONDAY
And this was our bonus day. Today the neighbors invited us over for lunch, which was clearly a nice detail since it was them, their family, and us. Sofia was Ok at the beginning, but once again lost it once it was time to actually sit down at eat. She said she did not want to sit at the kids table, even though she knew the other kids sitting there. We told her she either sat down or we were going home, but she wouldn't calm down. So Lionel ended up walking back home with her, while Isabella and I stayed. Eventually they came back, once she finally calmed down. She did not deserve to be there, but she couldn't stay home by herself, and Lionel did not want to be rude to the neighbors by not showing up again. And have I mentioned that Isabella didn't take a nap? After lunch the kids played for a little while, but by then Isabella was tired and cranky so around four we headed home. I then drove around with her so she took a nap in the car. After another battle we gave them a shower, had dinner, had another fight with Sofia about not sharing with her sister, and finally put them down. And once again, thanks to her bad behavior, Sofia went to bed without a good night from me.
So that's it! That is how we spent our weekend: Fighting with the ones we love the most. Isabella is always a handful, but I am not sure what is going on with Sofia. She has always been a whiner, but flat out throwing tantrums is out of character for her. Maybe she is already picking up bad habits from school. Maybe the transition to kindergarten is being so tough on her that she insists on fighting for things she thinks she can control. I am not sure, but I certainly wish I knew.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Autumn
When I got up this morning to go to my yoga class it was still somewhat dark. And the air was different. It was crisp, cool, unmistakable. It was the air of fall. It may only be September 4th, but there's one thing we can't deny: Fall is falling upon us.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Ya lo pasado pasado
This past weekend I finally started reading a book I've had for a very long time. My mother in law gave it to me about three years ago, but I never got around reading it for a variety of reasons. I first had mixed feelings about the subject, I then got so busy that reading books fell off my priority list, and finally I just forgot I even had it. I found it again, or it found me, as I was looking for something to read during the flight to Las Vegas. The book's name is "Once upon a quinceañera". Quinceañera parties in Latin countries are - or were - very much a tradition, similar to the "sweet sixteen" in the US. The author is from the Dominican Republic, but her family moved to the US, under very stressful circumstances, when she was about twelve years old.
In one of the initial chapters the author talks about one of her high school teachers, a young strong woman just out of college that she really looked up to when she was in boarding school. The author goes on to describe a particular instance when the actions of the teacher were so inspirational to her and her classmates that she remembered it for years to come. Then, many years later, as she is writing the book I am reading, she decides to track her teacher down. When she finally does, she is highly disappointed by the fact that her teacher does not even remember the inspirational story at all. "Really? I did that? It does sound like me, but I don't remember at all". That's about all the teacher had to say. It is then that the author starts wondering if the teacher was really that inspirational at the time, or if she made it all up in her head. Was it that she needed somebody to guide her, to look up to so badly, that she gave her teacher these mystic qualities that she never really had? And does it really matter anyway since this phenomenal person -real or not- met the author's needs at the time?
As I was reading the story about the teacher I couldn't help but look at my own life. And I thought about the people who throughout the years, knowingly or not, helped me overcome difficult times. Maybe the thing that cheered me the most is the thing they thought about the least. Maybe they never even knew how important they were to me. Maybe they were not as funny as I thought, as smart as they appeared, or as special as they were in my eyes. Maybe they don't ever think of me anymore. Maybe it's best if I just never know.
In one of the initial chapters the author talks about one of her high school teachers, a young strong woman just out of college that she really looked up to when she was in boarding school. The author goes on to describe a particular instance when the actions of the teacher were so inspirational to her and her classmates that she remembered it for years to come. Then, many years later, as she is writing the book I am reading, she decides to track her teacher down. When she finally does, she is highly disappointed by the fact that her teacher does not even remember the inspirational story at all. "Really? I did that? It does sound like me, but I don't remember at all". That's about all the teacher had to say. It is then that the author starts wondering if the teacher was really that inspirational at the time, or if she made it all up in her head. Was it that she needed somebody to guide her, to look up to so badly, that she gave her teacher these mystic qualities that she never really had? And does it really matter anyway since this phenomenal person -real or not- met the author's needs at the time?
As I was reading the story about the teacher I couldn't help but look at my own life. And I thought about the people who throughout the years, knowingly or not, helped me overcome difficult times. Maybe the thing that cheered me the most is the thing they thought about the least. Maybe they never even knew how important they were to me. Maybe they were not as funny as I thought, as smart as they appeared, or as special as they were in my eyes. Maybe they don't ever think of me anymore. Maybe it's best if I just never know.
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